The social inequalities of health have persisted, or even increased, in Europe in the last few years. This text presents the experiences of professionals from various institutional backgrounds in eight European countries, as well as their recommendations to improve the access of excluded people.

Healthcare regulations should guarantee that everybody has access to appropriate healthcare. The main goals for healthcare are: Equal access to health care for everyone; Cost-efficient production of health services and Cost-control of public expenditure for medical services. Especially cost-control seems to be a global problem. One of the key issues in the debate on how to improve healthcare is rationing. It is an important challenge to understand the various methods of rationing in medical care, to analyse the effects of rationing and the ways to harmonize the various rationing cultures in Europe. This publication gives a comprehensive overview of the perception of different population groups in an international context and it shows how the different population and occupational groups estimate the possibilities, forms and also limits rationing in the near future. Patients who are affected by rationing decisions could ask for treatment in foreign European countries. In order to limit social inequities caused by capacity problems in less rationed countries it is important in a first step to demonstrate the differences in rationing procedures between European countries.

Attempts to increase the transparency in the rating methods and - in the interest of pertinent disclosure of risks associated with common procedures of occupational health and safety - to work towards the elimination of unacceptable simplifications and faulty ratings. This work emphasises discussion of rating methods of acoustic stress.

Vascular endothelial plays a significant role in regulating blood flow, and endothelial cells (EC) have highly active metabolic functions. This volume focuses on Vascular Endothelium, NO and Hypertension and is a continuum of the volumes on Mechanobiology of Cartilage and Chondrocyte.

Focuses on the impact of health economic evaluation studies on decision-making in nine European countries. This publication reports on the results of a project called European Network on methodology and Application of Economic Evaluation Techniques (EUROMET).

The enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) has drawn the attention of scientist as it has played a striking role in Alzheimer's disease, Cardiac diseases and other diseases. A good discussion and overview document on AChE enzyme and its various aspects was felt lacking since a long time in the field of enzyme biochemistry as well as enzyme biotechnology and this publication fills this gap. Before this publication there was no data available on AChE enzyme inhibition, its kinetics, its peripheral sites, their role in catalytic and noncholinergic function of enzyme, ACh receptors, AChE and BuChE genes etc. All these topics together form a good basis for researchers and post graduate students in this field of interest. This book is a collection of recent advanced reports and data on AChE enzyme.

This book covers the proceedings of the Fifth Symposium on Mechanobiology of Cartilage and Chondrocyte. Mechanobiology can be now considered as a vigorous branch of biomechanics, biorheology and physiology mainly concerned with the study of the influence of mechanical forces on cells and tissues and their clinical or therapeutical applications. As we are now in the age of proteomics, genomics and cell micro mechanical approaches, suing methods like laser tweezers or confocal microscopy, mechanobiology brings new challenges. With such new research, mechanobiology promises new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. In other respect there has been increasing interest over recent years in the fundamental role played by local mechanical parameters in chondrocyte regulations and cartilage dysfunctions as a first step in the development of osteoarthritis. These proceedings are sub-divided into four parts: Theoretical approaches and mechanobiology of chondrocyte; Cartilage and chondrocyte studies; Osteoarthritis: inflammation degradation and clinical approaches; and, Cartilage engineering

Provides insights not only into the work of the National Institutes of Health, but the relationship between institutional and governmental structures and the manner in which they influenced the direction taken by individual scientists. The recollections of the individuals in the intramural program juxtaposed alongside whatever primary sources have survived also provide an equally fascinating contrast. It provides a perspective that can illuminate contemporary policy debates about the nature and direction of biomedical and social science research as well as the relationships between government and science.